This week in Tampa: Jake Owen, Vince Gill, Casiotone for the Painfully Alone and more

Aside from one indie beardo (Casiotone for the Painfully Alone, above) and two country dudes (Vince Gill and Jake Owen), this week's concert highlights are mostly local.

In St. Petersburg, you've got a top-notch local lineup for ARTpool's I Love St. Pete art show, including the Semis, the Sheaks, Ryan Wendell Bauer and John Q. A few blocks away at the State Theatre, you've got Gainesville fave Chris McCarty, as well as locals Burning Tree, Bootleg and the Prospect. And over in Tampa, relentlessly creative scene-setters Poetry 'N Lotion will release their latest CD, Kentucky Monkey. That's a lot of former Artists of the Day, right there.

After the jump, Carole Giambalvo walks you through these concerts and more ..

I Love St. PeteFeaturing the Semis, the Sheaks, Ryan Wendell Bauer, John Q.SATURDAY 7 p.m. ARTpool Gallery and Vintage Boutique, 919 First Ave. N, St. Petersburg. $10-$15. (727) 324-3878.When you think about the city of St. Petersburg (“Da ’Burg”, if you’re nasty), what comes to mind? Vinoy Park’s oceanside landscape? The upside-down pyramid? Post-Jannus chicken souvlaki? During ARTpool’s fourth annual I Love St. Pete event, artists will display works inspired by — you guessed it — St. Pete. Trading bawdy for beachy, the Semis’ new batch of sun-kissed rock songs fit the soundtrack perfectly. Influences as far flung as the Beach Boys and Cheap Trick can be heard in the band’s newly optimistic garage-pop-surf mix. Ryan Wendell Bauer’s seriously skilled synth-pop maneuvering is offset by a goofball stage presence, while John Q. offers everyman rock (just as the name suggests) that’s both rootsy and inviting.

Jake OwenFRIDAY 10 p.m. The Dallas Bull, 3322 U.S. 301 N, Tampa. $9.95-$15. (813) 987-2855.If tobacco dipping and dusty roads don’t get your blood pumping, maybe monster tires will. In what may be the silliest, chest-puffing country single of 2009, Eight Second Ride finds Vero Beach-born stud muffin Jake Owen impressing a new lady friend with his spittoon and truck tire girth. But the cowboy with the sexy baritone switches gears on sweet, slow-burning love songs like Easy Does It, showing he’s got more in store than just bad pick-up lines and neighborhood bar stories.

Casiotone for the Painfully AloneWith Sleepy Vikings, the Aloha ModelSATURDAY 9 p.m. New World Brewery, 1313 E Eighth Ave., Ybor City. $7. (813) 248-4969.Remember the first time you tapped on a Casio? Those keytop icons challenging you to put vibraphone over a Western swing beat or an organ over a disco groove? Unlike most of us, Chicago’s Owen Ashworth stuck with the craft. Today his lo-fi electronic project — think the Postal Service with somber, deadpan vocals or Beck with more synths and electronic blips — has gained a devoted following. But as the name suggests, Ashworth seems like one tortured, longing soul.

A Reason to RockFeaturing Chris McCarty, Bootleg, Burning Tree, the ProspectSATURDAY 6 p.m. State Theatre, 687 Central Ave., St. Petersburg. $15-$20. (727) 895-3045.This annual Parkinson’s fundraiser features Gainesville’s soulful, acoustic rock favorite Chris McCarty. Over the years, college students have come to appreciate McCarty’s passionate Dave Matthews-esque jams more than free food itself. The onetime winner of a Lou Perlman-hosted talent contest and a finalist on the television show Rockstar Supernova, McCarty will be joined by Warped Tour-ready act the Prospect and Sublime torch-carriers Bootleg and Burning Tree.

Jonathan Tyler and the Northern LightsWith Thomas Wynn and the Believers WEDNESDAY 9 p.m. New World Brewery, 1313 E. Eighth Ave., Ybor City. $7. (813) 248-4969.Fresh off Lynyrd Skynyrd’s “Simple Man Cruise” (did you ever think you’d see those words strung together?), Jonathan Tyler and the Northern Lights bring cocky hard rock to New World. Frontman Tyler’s commanding, church-bred vocals power the group’s Southern rock and Gospel-tinged tracks. The Lone Star State up-and-comers have opened shows for AC/DC, Kid Rock and O.A.R., to name a few.

Vince GillTHURSDAY 8 p.m. Ruth Eckerd Hall, 1111 McMullen-Booth Road, Clearwater. $42.50-$82.50. (727) 791-7400.While a gifted guitarist and bluegrass performer, Vince Gill is best known (and most commercially successful) as the sensitive balladeer. Just in time for Valentine’s Day, Gill will release Love Songs, a collection of weak-in-the-knees favorites including When Love Finds You and Let’s Make Sure We Kiss Goodbye.